WIMBLEDON, July 1: Top-ranked Ash Barty advanced to the third round of a Wimbledon women’s draw depleted of other top contenders by beating Anna Blinkova 6-4, 6-3 Thursday.
No. 3-seeded Elina Svitolina became the latest upset victim, and eight of the top 11 players in the WTA rankings are out of the tournament due to defeat, withdrawal or injury.
Barty avoided an exit by overcoming an uncharacteristically unreliable serve. She committed nine double-faults and was broken three times. But she also hit 33 winners to 12 for Blinkova. Barty, the 2019 French Open champion, needs two more wins to become a Wimbledon quarterfinalist for the first time.
Svitolina lost to Magda Linette, who earned the biggest victory of her career, 6-3, 6-4. The Polish player, ranked 44th, had never before beaten a top-15 opponent in a completed match.
Coco Gauff was back on Centre Court and the 17-year-old American defeated 34-year-old Russian veteran Elena Vesnina 6-4, 6-3.
French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova extended her winning streak to 14 matches by beating Andrea Petkovic 7-5, 6-4.
In men’s play, second-seeded Daniil Medvedev saw off promising Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 to match his best result at Wimbledon by making the third round.
Fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev hit 13 aces, lost only 12 points on his serve and beat Tennys Sandgren 7-5, 6-2, 6-3.
Britain advanced three men to the third round for the first time in 22 years. Cameron Norrie received a standing ovation on Court 1 when he won to join Andy Murray and Dan Evans in the round of 32 by sweeping wild card Alex Bolt 6-3, 6-1, 6-2.
No. 16 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova swept past Kristyna Pliskova 6-3, 6-3. No. 19 Karolina Muchova and No. 30 Paula Badosa also advanced.
Earlier, India’s Sania and her American partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands defeated Alexa Guarachi of Chile and Desirae Krawczyk of the United States 7-5, 6-3 in a first round encounter played on Court 8. (AP)
